Patricia Garamendi
Director Emeritus
Patricia Garamendi has been nationally recognized for her experience in reinventing government. She has served as a deputy secretary at both the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency and the California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency. Patricia also served as a deputy administrator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Foreign Agriculture Service Agency. She led policy development and program administration that promoted USDA’s involvement in global development efforts around the world. In this role, she led a $13-million recovery program following Hurricane Mitch and helped develop the Global Food for Education Program. Her experience in agriculture also spans her 25 years of managing her own family’s cattle ranch in California. Previously, Patricia served as an associate director for the U.S. Peace Corps, which she and her husband served in as volunteers in Ethiopia. Patricia holds a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, and a J.D. from UC Berkeley’s Humphrey’s Law School.